Memorandum pad holder



July 5, 1932.

F. A. WATKINS MEMORANDUM PAD HOLDER Filed July 28. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 July 5, 1932. w T s MEMORANDUM PAD HOLDER Filed July 28, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l Ili illlllll 1 and the removal of the same therefrom,

Patented July 5. 1932 FREDERICK A. WATKINS, or cnIoAGo, I LLnvoIs MEMORANDUM PAID HOLDER Application filed Jul as,

.My invention relates to memorandum pad holder, and particularly to a holder of this kind especially adapted for application to a telephone instrument pedestal.

"One of the objects of the invention is to provide a simple practical and advantageous construction of device of the class specified.

. Another object of the invention is to secure simplicity and inexpensiveness in construction.

Another object of the invention is to permit the substantial portionof the device to be made out of a single piece of material, such as. metal.

Another object of the invention is to permit the paper or pad, when used in the form of a continuous roll or strip, to be advanced in the natural manner for continuous writing,-that is, in an upward direction so'that new writing can continuously be placed be-' low that already on the paper.

Another object of the invention is to facilitate the application of the device to a support, such as a telephone instrument pedestal,

A still further object of the invention is to arrange for the reduction of friction or resistance to the movement of a strip of paper and thereby prevent tearing.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a telephone instrument provided with a memorandum pad holder embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a sideelevation of the same;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional'view of the telephone instrument pedestal and Pad holding device attached thereto;

Fig. 4 is-a view taken on line 14 in Fig. 3

Fig. 5 is a view taken on line 5-5 in Fig. 4; and I a 7 Fig. 6 is a detail of construction.

Referring to the drawings, I-show a con ventional telephone instrument comprising a base 1, a pedestal 2 supporting a transmitter 3, and a receiver a mounted. on a hook 5.

The pad supporting device'is referred to generally'as 1A, and is shown mounted upon and attached to the pedestal 2. p .The pad supporting device A 1 preferably consists of'a frame piece or member prefera- 1928. Serial Ne. 295,894.

bly made of sheet metal which may be stamped into the desired shape orconstruc tion, as will be explained. This metal frame has a preferably flat plate or writing surface 7' forming a writingsurface for the ,pad or 4 paper 8, which is arranged upon it, so that whenever desired a person using'the phone may readily make notes or memorandum on the paper piece or strip 8. I

This plate or writing surface 7 is preferably provided with transverse'slots 9 and 10 near its upper and lower ends to permit the passage of the paper strip 8 in case a long strip or roll is used.

The frame 6 is also preferably provided with a downwardly extending portion 11 which servesas a support for the writing plate or surface 7 and also as a, portion of the attaching arrangement for attaching the device to the telephone pedestal 2.

Tosuch end the extension or portion 11 is preferably provided with a curved abutment 12 shaped or curved substantially. in accordance with the curvature of the telephone instrument pedestal 2 and this abutment -is preferably provided with soft material such as felt 13 to permit the abutment to beplaced in contact and clamped firmly against the pedestal 2 without injuring thesame. v This abutment 12 may be made by stamping out an aportion of the side member or extension 11, as shown in Fig. 3. V 7

An attaching clamp or device is p rovided to cooperatewith abutment. 12 to clamp the pad holder to the pedestal 2, such clamping device preferably comprising a slide rod it having a transverse end or abutment 15 which may conveniently be formed by bending an end portion of rod 14 into more or less circular form, as shown in Fig. 6. A cushion of felt or like material 17 is likewise preferably applied to abutment 15;to 'allow'contact and clamping action against pedestal 2, without injuring the same. The other end of rod '14 is screw-threaded, as at-.18, and is adapted to pass through member 11, as shown in Fig. 4, and also through another downwardly projecting member 19, as shown in Fig.8, and said member 14; is arranged and provided with means for clamping abutment '15 against I Thus the device may be readily pedestal 2 to cooperate with abutment 12 to hold the pad firmly in position. The clamping means preferably consists of a hollow cylindric member 20 covering rod 14 and interposed between members 11 and 19, and a spring 21 enclosed within member 20 and having one end made smaller and inserted in a groove or slot 22 in rod 14 so as to tend to push rod 14 outwardly to separate abutment 15 from abutment 12 and thereby facilitate the connection and disconnection of the device by tending to open or separate the clamping jaws. A nut 28 is mounted on the threaded end 18 so as to permit adjustment of rod 14. Thus, by fitting abutments 12 and 15 on opposite sides of pedestal 2 and then turning -nut23 to draw rod 14 inwardly, that is,

to move abutment 15 toward abutment 12,

abutments 12 and 15 will be clamped firmly upon pedestal 2 and thus hold the device in firm and rigid condition to permit writing to 'be readily done upon it.

applied to or removed from the pedestal of a telephone instrument and the spring action on rod 14 tending to hold the clamping jaws separated facilitates this action. Furthermore, by making rod 14 square, or of some similar shape, said rod is prevented-from turning in its bearings and hence abutment 15 will be held in proper place without the necessity of holding it by hand, so that the device may be applied to the telephone instrument by merely placing it in position without having to adjust any parts.

The device is shown arranged for the use of a continuous strip of paper arranged in the form of a roll, although certain features of the invention are just as well adapted for the useof paper in other forms.

In the arrangement shown, a roll 25 of paper, of which the strip 8 is a part, is shown mounted below the writing member 7 and so arranged that the paper strip may be passed r through the lower slot 10 and then upwardly and then back through the upper slot 9, in which way the movement of the paper strip may be'accomplished, as desired, by merely pulling upwardly the projecting end 8 so as to bring further portions of unused paper upon the lower part of the writing plate 7. This permits the writing to be done in a natural way, continuously with each line below the other. The paper strip is preferably led around tubular member 21, which latter is preferably placed below the lower slot 10 so that the paper will be fed to said 'sl0t10 at an obtuse angle whereby tightening of the paper to cause undue friction or tearing is avoided. Thus tubular member 21 may serve as a. paper guide and it will also serve as a strengthening device between members 11 and 19.

As a preferred-arrangement for holding the'roll 25 in proper position, the member or extension 11 is provided with a pin 27 which may, if desired, be permanently secured, as by riveting, to said member 11. This pin 27 has its outer end screw-threaded, as at 28, and a nut 29 is applied thereto. Outside of pin 27 is a loose cylindric member 30 preferably made of wood and on this loose member or spindle 30 is mounted the tubular hub or spindle 31 of the paper roll 25. A pair of spring washers 33 and 34 are mounted on spindle 27 between nut 29 and roller spindle 31, the result of which arrangement is that the roll 25 may be readily turned on spindle 30 to allow further portions of paper strip to be drawn across the writing plate 7 and at the same time a friction braking effect may be applied to spindle 31 by spring washerg 28, which, of course, have a certain amount of spring or cushion action. This tension may be varied by turning nut 29 so as to-allow the ready movement of the paper over the writing surface as easily as desired.

For holding the paper strip in proper position on the writing plate, a small coiled spring 87 is provided, being conveniently attached by having its ends 38 engage notches 89 in writing plate 7, as shown in Fig. 5, so that said spring 87 will lie underneath said plate 7 and hold the paper on the writing surface in a taut condition, to which it may be drawn.

The entire frame body piece may be made of a single piece of sheet metal, thereby permitting ready manufacture in quantities at low cost. The device may be readily attached and detached, as explained. and this is facilitated further by the fact that the abutment 12 is preferably rounded to coincide with the rounded surface of the telephone instrument pedestal, whereas the abutment 15 is substan tially fiat, thereby permitting ready application and detachment of the device. 7

It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

l/Vhat I claim is:

1. In a memorandum pad-holder for telephone pedestal comprising a frame including a platen, side members integral therewith and bent downward therefrom, a clamp .of rectangular cross section having one end screw threaded and the other end bent at right angles and formed in a circular abutment; holes in the side members for mounting the said clamp member, one of the holes being of rectangular form to co-operate with the rectangular portion of the clamp member to prevent its turning; the side adjacent the pedestal having a portion thereof struck out to fit the form of the pedestal and held thereagainst by the said clamp.

2. A device of the classspecified comprising a body having a platen for writing paper, said body having downwardly extending side portions'and means for detachably attaching the device to a telephone instrument standard comprising a clamping rod extending transversely through said downwardly extending members and having at its far end a transverse abutment adapted to engage the far side of the instrument standard and a coil spring tending to act upon said rod and resist the movement of its transverse abutment into contact with the far side of the instrument standard, said rod being slidably mounted to permit it to be actuated to bring said abutment into and out of engagement with the instrument standard to cause the clamping of the device to the instrument standard and the release and disengagement of the same therefrom, and a tubular member extending transversely of the body of the device and containing said slidable rod and spring means therefor. v

3. A device of the class specified comprising a body having a platen for writing paper, said body having downwardly extending side portions and means for detachably attaching the device to a telephone instrument standard comprising a clamping rod extending transversely through said downwardly extending members and having at its far end a transverse abutment adapted to engage the far side of the instrument standard and a coil spring tending to act upon said rod and resist the movement of its transverse abutment into contact with the far side of the instrument standard, said rod being slidably mounted to permit it to be actuated to bring said abutment into and out of engagement with the instrument standard to cause the clamping of the device to the instrument standard and the release and disengagement of the same therefrom, and a tubular member extending transversely of the body of the device and containing said slidable rod and spring means therefor, said tubular member being arranged to pass through the outer downwardly extending member and to engage the inside of the downwardly extending member adjacent the instrument standard and the outer end of said clamping bar being threaded and provided with an adjusting nut cooperating-with an abutment attached to the body member.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 26th day of July, A. D., 1928.-

FREDERICK A. WATKINS. 

